The Google search engine box is shown. (Photo : Reuters)
Google will be facing the legal wrath of European authorities after years of disagreement on how the search giant conducts its business in the continent.
The European Commission asked people who filed confidential complaints against the California-based tech giant for permission to make their filings open to the public.
EU is believed to be preparing to formally file antitrust charges against Google, according to PC Mag.
Google and the EU have been in a quiet legal war since 2010, when the European Commission initiated an antitrust investigation into the search engine giant because of allegations that the former have been abusing its already-dominant position in the online search industry.
In 2014, the EU made public a deal with Google, where the Android OS maker would be showing links from rival search engines on its results, and to lessen the competition for competing firms.
However, Joaquín Almunia, a former competition chief, re-opened the case against Google in September 2014 due to a number of competitors requesting for additional concessions.
Currently, the bureau is now headed by Margrethe Vestager. She said in November 2014 that Google would be still investigated over its allegedly unfair search business.
David Wood, a legal counsel who represents the opponents of the Gmail maker, said that they are seeing sings that Vestager is considering filing a statement of objections, according to The Register.
"The FTC report is a game-changer in terms of the sort of public behaviour that Google engaged in," said Wood.
If EU goes on to wage a legal war with Google, Vestager could potentially fine the search engine giant for up to 10 percent of its yearly turnover.
